Perseus Book Group’s new Constellation service offers independent publishers a conduit to digital formats and platforms. From the New York Times:
The companies involved in the deal include Google, for its Google Book Search feature; Amazon, for its Kindle electronic reader; Sony, for its Sony Reader; Barnes & Noble, for its “See Inside” feature on its Web site; and Lightning Source, a print-on-demand company.
Publishers who use the new service can provide a single digital book file to Constellation and specify how they would like it to be used.
Ingram Digital, OverDrive, LibreDigital and the non-profit Caravan Project provide similar digital services, although the tools, formats and distribution channels vary across firms.